Harry Kane was England’s match-winning hero yet again at the 2026 World Cup – and has now attracted the attention and acclaim of US President Donald Trump.
The Three Lions captain put away a penalty to secure what turned out to be a 3-2 victory over co-hosts Mexico in the Azteca Stadium, despite heat and altitude fears.
And President Trump appeared to be among the millions tuning in to the thunderstorm-delayed game, hailing the Bayern Munich and ex-Tottenham Hotspur striker for his efforts.
Mr Trump posted on his own TruthSocial account: ‘Harry Kane of England is a GREAT player!!!’
His comment comes amid controversy over football’s world governing body FIFA letting US star striker Folarin Balogun play in their quarter-final against Belgium despite being sent off in their previous match versus Bosnia and Herzegovina.
England booked their place in the World Cup quarter-finals in the early hours of this morning on an unforgettable and raucous evening at the Azteca Stadium.
Real Madrid attacking midfielder Jude Bellingham scored twice within two first half minutes before skipper Kane later scored from the spot.
England manager Thomas Tuchel’s men held on for a 3-2 victory despite a late penalty response by Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Raul Jimenez.
Harry Kane shared pictures of the victory over Mexico, on social media, with the word: ‘Wow!’
The England captain was also acclaimed online by US President Donald Trump
Kane was congratulated after the 3-2 triumph in the Azteca by manager Thomas Tuchel
Kane and his team-mates are now preparing for a quarter-final in Miami next Saturday, at 10pm UK time, against Norway.
Manchester City centre-forward Erling Haaland scored twice as his side defeated five-time World Cup winners Brazil 2-1 earlier on Sunday.
England’s hopes of progressing to the next round came with concerns about the heat and the altitude in Mexico City – while local fans also bombarded the stars’ hotel with all-night fanfares.
Yet England surged suddenly into a 2-0 lead in the first half of a game whose kick-off had been delayed for an hour due to thunderstorms.
Bellingham took his tally for this tournament to four, set up for his first by Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka and then his almost-instant second by Kane.
England fans had been thronging Mexico City ahead of the game and also congregating in the iconic Azteca Stadium.
The last time England played in the ground was at the Mexico-staged World Cup 40 years ago, losing 2-1 to that tournament’s eventual champions Argentina.
That match is among the World Cup’s most memorable, Diego Maradona scoring with what he called his ‘Hand of God’ before a scintillating solo run.
Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham were on the scoresheet again as England beat Mexico 3-2
Last night’s clash between England and Mexico in the same arena is already being acclaimed as another all-time World Cup classic.
It has also been hailed as the Three Lions’ greatest World Cup victory since beating West Germany to lift the Jules Rimet trophy after the Wembley final in 1966.
President Trump has taken a keen interest in the 2026 World Cup which is being co-hosted by the US, Mexico and Canada – with the majority of matches in his country.
The final is scheduled to take place in New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium on July 19.
The US president and his FIFA counterpart Gianni Infantino have forged a keen friendship – with the latter recently granting Mr Trump an inaugural Fifa Peace Prize.
President Trump also yesterday welcomed the fact that US forward Balogun – a Brooklyn-born forward who grew up in London – would be permitted to play in the quarter-finals despite his red card.
The one-match suspension that would usually come into play has been suspended for a year – amid suggestions the White House put in calls to FIFA and prompting complaints from the USA’s next opponents Belgium.
President Trump posted on Truth Social: ‘Thank you to FIFA for doing what was right, and reversing a great injustice!’
Donald Trump previously posed in the White House with Gianni Infantino in August 2018
A FIFA statement read: ‘In line with article 27 of the Fifa disciplinary code, the implementation of the match suspension is suspended for a probationary period of one year.
‘If Folarin Balogun commits another infringement of a similar nature and gravity during the probationary period, the suspension shall be revoked and the sanction enforced without prejudice to any additional sanction imposed for the new infringement.’
Under Article 10.5 of FIFA’s tournament regulations, the dismissal automatically carries a mandatory one-game suspension.
Multiple FIFA officials had previously confirmed that national teams are prohibited from formally appealing red cards or the subsequent disciplinary sanctions.
However, the governing body’s judicial committee utilized a rare stipulation within Article 27 of the disciplinary code to circumvent the immediate ban.
The specific regulation allows the committee to fully or partially suspend the implementation of a disciplinary measure.
The disciplinary body recently applied the exact same probationary regulation to Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo ahead of the tournament.
Ronaldo initially faced a ban following a violent conduct dismissal during a World Cup qualifying match against the Republic of Ireland in November 2025.
He was sent off after catching defender Dara O’Shea with a trailing elbow during a 2-0 defeat in Dublin.
However, after the Portugal captain served a one-game suspension during the team’s subsequent 9-1 victory over Armenia, Fifa intervened.
The governing body suspended the final two matches of the ban under a one-year probation period.
That cleared the five-time Ballon d’Or winner to lead his country from the start of the current tournament – with Portugal also now in the quarter-finals, facing Spain.
